By Miguel Bustillo, Wall Street Journal, September 14, 2010
Electronics retailers are revamping their aisles to focus on hand-held gadgets this holiday season to excite consumers who have grown weary of their traditional big-sellers: televisions and personal computers
Shoppers this Christmas can expect to see more smartphones, electronic readers and touch-screen computers in the most prominent store displays, underscoring a dramatic shift to powerful portable devices that is fast changing the face of consumer electronics retailing.
The new priorities are plainly evident in the changing strategy of Best Buy Co., the nation's largest electronics retailer by revenue, which is now morphing into a mobile gadget specialist after decades of promoting the latest in big-screen televisions, desktop computers and high-fidelity stereos.
Best Buy, which reported a 61% jump in second quarter profit Tuesday despite flat sales at stores open at least 14 months, said it will showcase devices such as Apple Inc.'s iPad tablet computer and Amazon Inc's Kindle e-reader this holiday season. It also plans to turn the middle of its stores into a playground for motion-sensing videogame accessories from Sony Corp. and Microsoft Corp.
"People are willing to disproportionately spend for these devices because they are becoming so important to their lives," Best Buy Chief Executive Brian Dunn said in an interview. "We are really positioning the company to be the place where people can come and see the best of the connected world."
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